


a fallen star will be thy faith

by AngelWithAStory



Series: Author’s Favourites [17]
Category: Critical Role (Web Series), Critical Role: Wildemount Campaign (Web Series)
Genre: Angst, Demons Are Assholes, Established Relationship, Fjord pov, Hurt/Comfort, Mature Rating For Later Chapters, Team as Family, background beau/yasha, takes place later in campaign, talking through your problems like functioning adults
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-02
Updated: 2018-02-18
Packaged: 2019-03-12 16:44:50
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,755
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13551456
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AngelWithAStory/pseuds/AngelWithAStory
Summary: This was not how Fjord was expecting his night to go.(rating changed from mature to explicit due to last chapter)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> me, a week ago: I kinda want to write Fjord and Caleb getting together and being a couple and maybe a little smut?  
> me: but how can I make this angst?
> 
> (title from Lord Huron - Ancient Names (part 1) purely bc I've had it literally on loop for the last few days)
> 
> but yeah, this takes place a fair bit into the future of the current campaign and is one of the more self-indulgent things I've written in a while, I will admit.

Everything was normal during the day, and for once, that normalcy bled into the night. It was just them, their little group, sitting in a tavern and drinking. Not heavily - they _did_ have things to do the next day, after all - but still enough to feel it. Nott more than most.

One day he’d ask why this small goblin always seemed to drink enough for the group. But not that night. It was a time for celebration, and laughter and sharing jokes.

Caleb retired for the night first. He had some books that he wanted to start reading before he went to sleep. That much was normal, as well.

Fjord smiled when Caleb gave him a small kiss goodnight, pointedly ignoring the small but playful vomiting noise Jester made and Beau’s ‘ _whoop_ ’. Nott stayed downstairs, happily getting on with Jester, but she still smiled when Caleb gave her a last, quick hug before leaving.

After him, it was Beau’s turn to make her excuses. She yawned a few times for authenticity, but all of that was undercut by the way she glanced at Yasha when she thought no one was looking, or the way her fingers brushed against her arm as Beau rose to her feet. It was deliberate, and Fjord had to smile at the falsely neutral look on Yasha’s face.

Beau knew exactly what she was doing… Fjord hoped so at least. If not, then Fjord just hoped that Yasha could play that game too.

Barely a minute after Beau left the table, Yasha stood and followed suit. She didn’t bother to give an explanation and no one really asked, either.

“Poor Caleb.” Mollymauk said, smiling as he began shuffling cards, laying them out, then collecting and shuffling them again. It seemed like a nervous tick or just something to keep his hands busy. Either way, it was a little mesmerising to watch.

“Why? What’s wrong with him?” Nott asked, her eyes a little wide.

“Nothing’s wrong, Nott.” Fjord said. He threw Molly a look; Molly just shrugged and held up a card.

_The Lovers_.

Of course.

“Then what did he mean?” Nott asked, looking around at the rest of them. Sometimes it was easy to forget that comparatively, Nott was still young and hadn’t been exposed to a lot of civilisation, considering how she drank and how - next to Jester - she seemed reasonable and mature. Sometimes they were sharply reminded.  

“I’ll let Caleb take that one.” Molly dismissed, tucking the card back into his stack and shuffling them again. He looked up from his cards and smiled at Nott. “You should ask him in the morning what those weird noises were.”

“Molly.” Fjord said, a frown between his brows.

“What? I’m very much kidding.” Molly said, though that wicked smile said the exact opposite.

Still, Fjord simply put his drink back on the table and pushed his chair back.

“Are you leaving?” Jester asked, some of her energy seeping away. She pouted dramatically as she spoke.

“Yeah, Jes. I’m pretty tired, so I think I’m going to turn in.” He said, giving her a small smile. “Don’t you three stay up too late.”

“We won’t!” Jester promised, not entirely convincingly. But Fjord was too tired to supervise them until they all went to bed. If he heard shouting and the sound of glass breaking, _then_ he would come back downstairs.

Until then, he was happy to settle down for the night.

Frumpkin was sat in the hallway outside their rooms, and Fjord said a little hello while keeping as far from the cat as possible. He knew the cat _couldn’t_ understand him, but it still felt polite to greet Frumpkin and occasionally thank him for being a lookout. Frumpkin’s eyes followed him as he passed, keeping his distance as well. Some distant part of Fjord’s mind wondered if Caleb had told him that Fjord was allergic and that he couldn’t be around cats, but every time he dismissed that idea as silly.

The cat couldn’t possibly understand Fjord, and he was only really loyal to Caleb. 

He was meant to be sharing a room with… someone, he wasn’t really sure who at this point. When they’d arrived, the rooms had been divided quite nicely: Caleb and Nott; Yasha and Molly; then Beau, Jester and himself. This tentative group was still new and some old comforts were better left kept in place. However, the arrangement became a little tentative when Beau and Yasha started… their relationship, and that usually ended up with the last people who went to bed all piling into the last room that was empty.

Of course, if he really wanted to, he could have slept in Caleb’s bed and let the others just get on with it, but it was already late. Caleb was probably already asleep and Fjord didn’t have the lightest footfalls. No point in waking him for no reason.

The door closed with a soft _thud_ behind Fjord and he sat down on one of the beds. They still had a lot of work to do, people to meet and supplies to restock on. They was a lot that he took responsibility for and _maybe_ that was his own fault, but there were very few people he could trust in the group to talk their way out of trouble.

But that was a trouble for tomorrow.

There was nothing he could do about it tonight.

So, methodically, he began to strip off his armour. It was a routine he had kept for as long as he cared to remember. Carefully taking off each piece and setting it aside. Checking for serious damage, and removing the dirt where he found it.

He was only broken out of his concentration when there was a light knock at the door. Too light to be Jester, too hesitant to be Molly. Too high up the door to be Nott. And it _certainly_ wasn’t Beau or Yasha, if rumours could be believed.

Fjord frowned.

He opened the door a little.

Caleb was stood on the other side of it.

That was enough for Fjord to open the door fully.  

“Caleb,” Fjord said, more to just say his name, “is everything alright?”

“Is it alright if I come in?” Was all Caleb asked. There was something about his posture that made Fjord step aside and let him in.

He seemed… Nervous? Agitated?

Fjord shut the door behind him and vaguely gestured for Caleb to take a seat on the bed. It took a moment or two for Fjord to move his armour to his bag and to sit down next to him. The bed creaked just a little under their weight.

“Caleb, what’s wrong?” Fjord asked. He had a hand braced against the bed as he leaned forwards just a little.

“Nothing’s wrong,” Caleb said, “I’ve just been thinking a lot about _us_. About how _dangerous_ this life we lead is. Anything can happen.”

Fjord felt something touch his hand. He felt Caleb’s fingers twine with his own. He didn’t look away from Caleb’s face.

There was something in his eyes now. Something _alive;_ that even the heat of battle couldn’t bring out. Something dangerous.

_Lust_.

“Caleb, are you sure nothing’s wrong?” Fjord asked, frowning a little now, “has something spooked you?”

“No, nothing has spooked me.” Caleb said. “I just-”

“Darlin’,” Fjord gently lifted Caleb’s chin just a little so they were looking eye-to-eye, “talk to me. You’re acting a little strange.”

“Fjord, I just don’t want to think for a little while,” Caleb said, eventually, “can you help me or not?”

The cogs started whirring into place and Fjord flushed when he felt Caleb’s hand on his inner thigh, his fingers stroking gentle circles.

“Oh.” Fjord said, when the penny finally dropped, “and you’re sure you want _this_?” Fjord said, trying to pretend that the look in Caleb’s eye wasn’t drawing his blood to inappropriate places.

“I want _you_.”

Fjord felt something strange. Like a cold tickle in the back of his brain.

Then Caleb’s grip was tightening around his hand and Fjord couldn’t really focus.

He felt Caleb’s hand press against his chest and then his back met the bed and suddenly Caleb was straddling him and everything felt _amazing._ There was thunder in his veins as Caleb tangled his hand in Fjord’s hair. Fjord’s hands gripped Caleb’s jacket like his life depended on it.

Achingly slowly, Caleb leaned down, threading his fingers into Fjord’s hair and holding him in place.

Fjord couldn’t wait. He only felt some primal instinct in his chest, to lean up and pull Caleb into a kiss. This was _Caleb_. The Caleb that had somehow managed to catch his eye in a crowded tavern and keep his attention. The Caleb that trusted him after a barely a day and _wanted_ to stay even after the circus had disbanded and they didn’t have a criminal investigation holding them together. The Caleb with the blue eyes and the big heart and Fjord couldn’t believe how quickly he was falling for this man, and how much he let him in.

Caleb’s hands kept him pinned in place and pinned to the bed. Fjord didn’t move.

Caleb’s face was just above Fjord’s. Their lips touched.

It……

It hurt.

_BANG_

The door was thrown open and before Fjord could even turn his face to look, a crossbow bolt split the air and sunk deeply into Caleb’s shoulder.

_“Caleb! Oh Gods, I shot Caleb!"_

That… That was Nott’s voice.

That didn’t make sense. She was downstairs.  

_“That’s not Caleb. Don’t stop shooting, Nott.”_

That was Molly’s voice.

That didn’t make sense either.

Purple hands suddenly gripped Caleb’s jacket and there were sharp claws raking across his face and the pain was enough for his mind to clear. It felt like he’d been doused with cold water and his first solid thought was the image of Mollymauk’s blades sticking out of a fiend’s chest that had been wearing Caleb’s face just a moment ago.

There was barely a seconds pause before reality crashed back into action. Jester’s hands were holding his face as she tried to heal him, sitting him up on the bed. Nott was stood, frozen in the doorway, her crossbow hanging by her side as she stared at the dead being on the floor. Molly simply wiped down his swords and stowed them away.

Molly’s gaze found Fjord’s. The look on his face was one of someone who knew exactly what had happened, and who pitied you for it.

“Well, I’m going to go inform the front desk that this has happened.” Was all Molly said as he strode out the room. The door didn’t make a sound as it closed, but maybe that was because the pulsing in Fjord’s ears was drowning it out.

Nott was still frozen in place, her crossbow raised and aiming at the dead fiend. There was no expression on her face, but her shoulders were shaking.

Jester’s hands were still holding him as she tried a healing spell, frowning as it did nothing but seal over the scratch on his face. But he knew it was just a distraction.  

“Nott,” Fjord croaked out, reaching his hand out towards her. Nott glanced over at him and held his gaze, “you should go tell Caleb about this. Let him know what happened. Can you do that for me?”

He tried to put as much confidence and normalcy as he could, but Nott’s shoulders still shook. She nodded, though, and she quickly scurried out of the room. Maybe she was just relieved that she didn’t have to look at it anymore.

Then it was just Fjord and Jester. And the awkwardness in the air was unbearable.

“How did you know?” Fjord asked. He never did like the silence, especially not tense ones.

“Frumpkin kept bothering us downstairs until we followed him, then he just scratched at your door until we opened it.” Jester said. Her fussing paused for a second, but only a second. She didn’t want to miss something that could come back and hurt him later.

“He did?”

Jester nodded sagely. She opened her mouth to say something else, but before she could, the door was thrown open and both of them jumped to their feet. Jester had her hands up and a spell half-cast before they registered Nott’s distressed face.

“Nott-” Jester said, lowering her hands just a little.

“Caleb’s not waking up.” The words poured out of Nott and she was trembling worse than they had ever seen.

_“What?"_  Fjord _must_ have misheard her.

Those words just didn’t make sense.

“He’s not waking up.” Nott repeated. “I don’t think he’s breathing. Please…” There were tears in her eyes and Jester was already moving.

“Get the others.” She said, meeting Fjord’s eye just for a second as she grabbed Nott’s hand and ran towards Caleb’s room.

He fought with himself for a hot second, but far be it from him to argue with The Cleric.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> up next: Angst! 
> 
>  
> 
> ~~it's midnight i have a 9am lecture in the morning and tomorrow is a busy day but this chapter is DONE and i'm posting it because it's FINISHEDi~~

Molly managed to beat Fjord back to the room as Fjord had to try and pry Beau and Yasha from each other. He settled for shouting through the door and hoping they would follow through.

When Fjord did finally burst through the door, he almost wished he hadn’t.

Jester had rolled up her sleeves, a look of desperation in her face as she ran her hands in the air over his chest. She had small beads of sweat on her forehead. Maybe she was praying. There were small sparks around her hands and her lips were moving like she was whispering something.

Nott was kneeling on the bed, holding Caleb’s head in her hands. He looked pale. _Frighteningly_ pale. And even from the doorway, Fjord could tell that Nott was quietly begging him to wake up. There were tear tracks down her face.

Molly took a second to take in the scene before him. All his muscles locked up and Fjord was suddenly worried he would do something terrible.

But then that moment passed and Molly shucked off his coat, throwing it into the corner.

“What do you need, Jester?” He asked, launching into action. Maybe he just wanted to feel useful. Jester didn’t reply or she didn’t hear, until Molly shook her shoulder. “Jester! Talk to us, what can we do?”

The sparks around Jester’s hands cut out with a small burst and she made a noise of frustration. She finally turned to Molly and the desperation was clear in her face. There was a split second of silence and Fjord could only fear the worst.

Then Jester seemed to pull herself together and she touched her holy symbol.

“We’re going to do this with no magic, _apparently_.” Jester said, throwing her hands up as she walked over to Caleb’s head. “Molly, get a bucket of cold water and a cloth. His temperature is high and I want to cool him down.”

The words were barely out of her mouth before Molly was already moving out the room.

“Do you know what’s wrong?” Fjord asked. He was afraid for the answer.

“He has a heartbeat, he’s not breathing as much as he should, his temperature is too high, and I am out of spells.” Jester reeled off as she busied herself with tasks that probably only made sense to her. She paused and looked Fjord in the eye.

She didn’t say anything, but she didn’t have to.  

This was not good.

“Nott, I need to get to Caleb’s face,” Jester’s voice was softer now and Fjord knew that he should probably do something, _anything_.

“Jester, he’s not breathing, why isn’t he breathing, is he going to be okay, please tell me he’s going to be okay-” Nott’s voice made Fjord’s chest ache.

“I’m going to do everything I can, but you need to let me get to him-”

“I’m not going to leave him!” Nott cried, clinging to him closer, “I won’t! You can’t make me!”

Fjord found himself moving before he could fully register the action and he quickly pulled Nott away and held her close to his chest. She fought him, and he almost lost his grip on her, but Fjord held fast. Her nails dug into his skin and tried to claw his flesh. He could feel blood be drawn, but that was unimportant right now.

The tears were falling down her face, and dripping onto the bed sheets. Fjord focussed on keeping Nott in his arms. She still stood on the bed, but he kept one arm around her midsection, holding her arm to her side, and his other hand across her shoulders.

(Some distant part of his brain remembered all the times he’d seen Caleb hold her. All the times he scooped her into his arms or carried her on his back. How easy he held her.)

(He wanted to turn her head away. He wanted to take her out the room. But she would never forgive him if he did.)

“He’s going to be okay, Nott.” Fjord whispered, leaning his head against hers. The behaviour was being more natural the more Nott and Caleb opened up to the rest of the group, but Fjord knew it would never be second nature quite like it was to Caleb.

But it would be _close_ to second nature.  

“He’s not waking up.” Nott’s voice was strained and breaking.

Mollymauk had the bucket of cold water now and an old cloth. Fjord barely heard them as Jester instructed him to wet the cloth and put it on Caleb’s forehead. He saw Molly’s lips form (what looked like) a filthy swear as he felt the heat of Caleb’s skin.

“He will.” Fjord promised, holding her just a little tighter, “Jester’s great at what she does, he’s going to be okay. He wouldn’t just leave us. Caleb’s going to be just fine.”

Jester tilted Caleb’s head back a little to clear his airway. She rummaged through her healer’s kit while Molly tried to cool down Caleb’s skin. Fjord had seen her do some incredible feats and repair some hefty damage, but the purpling tint to Caleb’s skin was worrying.

“You don’t know that.” Nott accused, but she was still clinging to Fjord’s arm now.

He wanted so badly to tell her that _yes, I do know that. There is no possible way that Caleb will be hurt_.

But Fjord wasn’t in the habit of lying to the people he ran with. And he didn’t want to start then.

Jester’s eyes flashed white for a moment and she started digging through the kit with a renewed fury. Even Molly seemed a little perturbed by Jester’s renewed energy.   

Still, Fjord stayed quiet.

He held Nott closer. He could feel her rapid heartbeat.

Jester pulled out a bottle from the Healer’s kit and wafted the uncorked bottle under Caleb’s nose. Molly still dabbed the cool cloth on his forehead. Fjord just held onto Nott.

Nott didn’t look away from Caleb’s face.  

The door opened again and Fjord looked up to see Yasha and Beau stop dead in their tracks.

His head snapped back to the bed as a small groan passed Caleb’s lips, and he began to stir.

“What the _fuck_ is going on?!” Beau demanded, gesturing to the general chaos in the room.

Caleb groaned again, louder this time, and his eyes slowly blinked opened.

Suddenly, there was a pain in Fjord’s arm and Nott clawed her way free of his grasp. She threw herself at Caleb, who let out a small ‘ _oof_ ’.

“Okay seriously, what the fuck happened?” Beau repeated, finally stepping into the room.

“Well, you two missed a lot while you were having a good shag.” Molly said, stepping back from the bed. He looked over at the newcomers and Fjord could see he looked tired. “First, Fjord gets attacked in his room by someone disguised as Caleb, then we find Caleb two inches from death. I’m probably missing a few details, but that’s the long and the short of it.”

There was two seconds of silence as that information sank in.

“Can you run that by us again?” Yasha asked, reflexively folding her arms across her chest.

Fjord stopped listening then as Molly caught Beau and Yasha (but mostly Yasha) up on everything that had happened in the last few minutes. His attention was taken by the bed. More specifically, Nott clinging to Caleb as Jester helped him sit up.

“Caleb, how many fingers am I holding up?” Jester asked, holding up three of her fingers with one hand and keeping Caleb up with the other.

“Is Molly telling the truth?” Caleb asked, ignoring Jester entirely. His arms absently wrapped around Nott as she clung to his shoulder. “Is that what happened?”

“Ye- Yeah. That’s pretty much what happened.” Fjord said, clearing his throat. He still stood awkwardly beside the bed, and he couldn’t look at Caleb.

Everything in him wanted to bundle Caleb against his chest and never move again. But he stayed where he was.

“You almost _died_ , Caleb.” Jester said, her voice about as serious as she could get. “But I _saved_ you, with some help from the Traveller. I’m very good at this.”

“How are you feeling?” Nott asked. She leaned back so she could look at his face, but she kept a tight hold of him. Caleb took a moment or so to think the question through.

“A little tired.” He said, “and more than a little concerned about the events of tonight.”

“That’s… that’s fair to say.” Fjord said, slowly.

“I think we will need to be more careful from now on.” Caleb said, “at least for a little while. If two of us were targeted in one night then it is not out of the realm of possibility that it may happen again.”

“Well I’m glad you’re still talking sense.” Molly said. He sounded significantly less frazzled than he had any right to be when someone had almost died in front of him. (Fjord didn’t want to think too deeply about _those_ implications). “Fjord, may I have a word? In private?”

“You can’t say it in front of us?” Beau demanded, falling back on her old habit of antagonising Molly at any time.

“That’s not really my decision, now is it?” Molly quipped. Even Beau was a little surprised at his flippancy, tinged just a little with impatience. There was no comradery in the room, and all of Molly’s mania had been drained from him. “Fjord?”

“Sure, Molly. Let’s talk in private.” Fjord said, after a beat of silence. He didn’t acknowledge the look on Beau’s face.

(Fjord didn’t take sides in their little game they had. It was just best to leave them to it.)

Still it took Fjord a few moments to leave Caleb’s side. Some part of him never really wanted to leave, but Molly rarely sounded as serious as he did after the events of the night.

The hallway was deserted, but still Molly walked down towards the abandoned end of it. Even then, he waited a few moments before he started talking.

“Do you know what that creature was that attacked you?” Molly asked, cutting straight to the point.

“No. No, I have no idea.” Fjord said, “right up until y’all killed it, I thought it was Caleb.”

“ _Did_ you? Did nothing about his behaviour seem a little strange?” Molly was keeping little distance between them and Fjord couldn’t underestimate the urgency in his voice.

Fjord tried to think back over every small detail that he desperately wanted to forget. Everything he wished wasn’t real, but was - in fact - _very_ real.

“I guess he was a little _off._ ” Fjord said, eventually. “He had a weird look in his eye. And-” Fjord caught himself. He didn’t really want to tell Mollymauk that it hurt to kiss Caleb; that felt much too personal, even if it wasn’t really Caleb.

Fjord was a gentleman; he wouldn’t kill and tell. Even if the kiss had almost killed him.

“ _And?_ ”

“And I felt this tickle in my head. In my brain, almost.” Fjord said.

“Ah. That’s because you were charmed. _Literally_ charmed.” Molly stressed the word and folded his arms across his chest. “You were charmed by a fiend wearing a face you found sexually appealing, though to be honest, I’m still not sure what you see in Caleb. Then again, I’m not one to judge. Thing is, I’m not sure if you’ve figured this out yet, but that was a incubus. And I’m pretty sure that incubus was _summoned_ , because fiends by themselves don’t target people already in relationships, _and_ they don’t try to kill the person they’re disguised as.”

“You… you sure know a lot, Mollymauk.” Fjord said slowly, buying himself time to process this information.

“You pick up things when you’re in the circus.” Molly shrugged, and they both knew it was a lie. A deflection. A distraction. They weren’t talking about Molly, they were talking about Fjord. “That really shouldn’t be the part you focus on.”

“You think someone summoned a fiend to attack us?” Fjord repeated, fixing Molly with a look that could usually coax the truth out of Jester and Beau.

“To attack _you_. Whoever it was got to Caleb directly.” Molly spoke so casually, but Fjord felt his heart _clench_ in fear.

The idea that whoever this was managed to get to Caleb, even though he had been with someone else all day and had been on his own in his room for less that an hour, it…

It was _terrifying._

“ _-ord?_ ”

Molly’s fingers snapped in front of Fjord’s face and he snapped back to the real world. He wondered if the true extent of his panic was visible on his face. He wondered if Molly was just that good at reading people.

It was no secret that Caleb wasn’t the stronger member of their little rag-tag group. No one really held that against him, especially since he had made up for his shortcomings time and time and time again. The fact that people on the outside just saw him as a weakest link - an easy target - was absurd and infuriating.

It was also a terrible dose of realism that Fjord wasn’t ready for.

“Why are you telling me this, Molly?” Fjord asked, probably sounding a little harsher than he intended. Not that Molly cared or reacted.

“Look, _no one_ wants to admit it,” Molly said, his shoulders relaxing into defeat, “but you and Caleb are very important to keeping this group together. We all like to pretend that we can make it on our own and that we would be fine about it, but now that we _have_ this strange little group… Now that we know how good we _can_ have it, none of us want to have that taken away.”

Fjord was quiet.

He really didn’t know what he _could_ say.

“We’re looking out for each other,” Molly said, “and now I suppose we need to watch our backs just a little better. We need to be a little smarter.”

Molly stayed quiet and let Fjord absorb those words. It was probably the most vulnerable Molly had let himself be around any of the others. Which in itself was a testament to how terrifying the night had been.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea for us to be away for too long,” Molly said, glancing over Fjord’s shoulder, “wouldn’t want the rest of them to worry.”

“I think you’re right.” Fjord said. Molly started to walk back, but Fjord caught his arm for a second. He could feel the scars even under the layers of clothes.

Molly stopped. He looked from Fjord’s hand up to his face with an unreadable expression.

“You’re just as important to this group as the rest of us.” Fjord said, not really sure why _now_ was a good time to say this, “Caleb and I would be very dead right now if it weren’t for you. I’d wager that you don’t give yourself _nearly_ enough credit.”

Molly was quiet for a moment. But he didn’t shrug off Fjord’s hand, so he took the frown on Molly’s as an accomplishment.

“Do you always get this sentimental when you nearly die?” Molly asked, a flat tone in his voice. He seemed a little surprised when Fjord laughed and squeezed his shoulder.

“I’ve been told I’m always like this.” Fjord said. “You just have get used to it.”

Once again, Molly was quiet.

But not a _bad_ quiet.

Just a thoughtful quiet.  

“We should go back.” Molly said eventually, still not shrugging off Fjord’s hand, “no doubt Jester will suggest a sleepover, and I would like to make my opinion known before the decision is made.”

“I didn’t even think of that,” Fjord said, a realisation dawning on him, “we should go.”

“Yes we should.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow what a fantastic bit of plot that i'm going to do literally nothing with because the next chapter's where all the smut is and after that i'm done :)


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the long awaited smut chapter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's DONE, i finally FINISHED IT THANK GOD  
> ugh this took me forever to complete, because I kept worrying about it sounding cringey or awkward and because I'm always a little awkward writing smut or smutty things, but at some point you just need to stop caring, ya know :/
> 
> STILL! it's here, and it's almost 5k words long so please enjoy <3

Fjord woke up the next morning with a familiar ache in his chest and in his lower back.

The pain in his chest only really set in when the events of the previous night flooded back to him. The pain in his lower back was from sleeping on the floor.

A small sigh passed his lips as Fjord sat up, as quietly as he could.

As far as he could tell, everyone else was still asleep; Nott and Caleb curled up on the bed beside him, Jester taking the other bed with Molly (who had to be argued and guilted by Jester into not sleeping on the floor _again_ ), Beau and Yasha on the floor beside the other bed casually holding each other. Yes, they had paid for other rooms, but no one really wanted to be alone and no one wanted to argue otherwise.

Delicately, Fjord let go of Caleb’s hand and placed it back on the bed with the rest of him. He hadn’t realised they’d fallen asleep like that, but it didn’t help the ache in his chest.

He made sure that the door didn’t make a sound as he left the room and latched the door again.

Maybe it wasn’t the smartest thing to just up and leave. Maybe he should have just gone back to sleep. Maybe he should have woken someone up and told them where he was going.

But he was still really hungry.

The note he left would have to be enough.

“You alright?”

Fjord blinked as he realised the barmaid was talking to him.

“You’re uh… _decorated_ friend told us what you folks had to go through last night-” she said, sounding more and more nervous by the letter.

“It’s not a problem,” Fjord assured her, leaning just a little on the bar itself, “ _really._  We handled it, and we’re not the type to hold grudges against people who don’t deserve it.”

The tension in her shoulders dissipated with Fjord’s words and his reassuring smile, but she still seemed sheepish.

“Still, I feel terrible that you lot had to go through that.” she said, “if you fancy it, and we’re not too busy, I could give you a few drinks on the house.”

“Well that would be mighty kind of you,” Fjord said earnestly, “but right now all I’m worried about is trying to get some breakfast for me and my companions. Is there anywhere in town we could go, or would it be possible to-”

“Oh we can do that for you, no problem.” The barmaid said, a new energy around her now she had a task to do. “Just a fry up?”

“That would be perfect, yeah. Oh, and some extra bacon.” Fjord said.

“Alrighty. You go take a seat and I’ll bring it over.” The barmaid turned away and Fjord realised just how deeply habits can run.

The only other people in the room were the leftovers from last night’s drinking, and most of them hadn’t woken up yet. It didn’t take long at all for Fjord to find the bigger table that they’d sat at the night before. As he sat, Fjord couldn’t quite escape the sinking pit in his stomach.

Someone in that room had hurt Caleb and summoned a fiend to hurt him. Someone last night had looked at their group and decided to hurt them.

Fjord couldn’t wait until they found that prick.

“What are you doing down here all by yourself?” The voice startled Fjord out of his thoughts but his heart settled down when he saw Jester sidle into the seat next to him.

“What are you doing up this early?” Fjord asked. He knew Jester didn’t _really_ like to have her questions answered by more questions, but Fjord needed a few seconds to think of a good answer.

“I saw you leaving the room so I woke Molly up and he told me to follow you.” Jester said, resting her head on her propped up hands and fixing Fjord with a specific look to try and poke the truth out of him, “now, answer my question Fjord.”

“I-” He began the lie, but the look on Jester’s face killed it in his throat, “I needed a little bit of time to think. About what I need to do.”

“About what, Fjord?” Jester asked. She tilted her head to the side slightly and Fjord smiled, just a little.

“About me and Caleb. About the group.” Fjord said. He knew saying it out loud made it terrible and real but he still said it, “when Molly pulled me aside last night, he made some good points. About what we all mean to each other now we’ve been travelling for a while. I don’t... I don’t want to be that weakness that means other people can get hurt.”

“Oh no! Are you going to break up with Caleb?” Jester asked suddenly, her eyes wide in surprise and a little fear. “But he makes you so happy! And Caleb washes more since you two started sharing a bed! You two are perfect for each other!”

Fjord had to laugh at that now. It echoed through the room just a little, but it sounded more honest now.

“Jes, I’m not going to break up with Caleb.” Fjord assured her. “I’m just… I don’t know how to keep this group safe when I don’t know what’s hurting us.”

“Silly, Fjord,” Jester teased, reaching out and poking Fjord’s shoulder, “that’s why the rest of us are going to _help_ you. We’re a team now, we can look out for each other.”

“Yep, you’re stuck with us now Fjord,” Beau said, flopping into the chair on Fjord’s other side. She had a tankard of ale in her hands already and a lopsided grin on her face. “No need to carry the weight of the world on your weakass shoulders.” She punched Fjord’s arm, pushing him to the side a little.

“We can _help_ each other Fjord.” Jester promised, reaching over and clasping his hands between hers, “and we’re going to keep Caleb less stinky because he is more pleasant to be around that way.”

“He _does_ smell better after you guys started banging,” Beau agreed, taking a gulp of her drink, “I think all that clean up’s paying off.”  

“Beau, come on now. Don’t be crass.” Fjord said, but it wasn’t the strongest admonishment he could have given.

“What?” Beau asked, “at least I didn’t make a seaman joke.”

“This time.” Jester pointed out.

“You two are going to be the death of me.” Fjord muttered, but he smiled all the same.

*

“I understand if you don’t want to see me,”

Caleb’s voice was subdued, and Fjord didn’t look up from his gauntlet. He knew Caleb was stood at the door, and that he had probably been milling over these words for a long while.

“Say what you need to, Caleb. I’m not going anywhere.” Fjord said, gently. The buckle finally gave and he slipped the armguard off.

Caleb had been avoiding his eye all day and it was getting old quick. He’d barely spoken to anyone but Nott, who had practically been glued to his leg as they started to ask questions around the town.

It wasn’t like Fjord expected Caleb to be fine, especially if it took Fjord most of the day to even let himself focus on the task at hand.

They needed time to process what had happened.

He just hoped that Caleb had followed a similar train of thought to him.

“I’m sorry, Fjord.” Caleb said, and that gave Fjord pause.

“Why are you sorry?”

“I’m sorry that I couldn’t do more. And I’m sorry that it was my face that fiend wore.” Fjord finally looked up and saw Caleb looking down at the floor.

It took a while for Fjord find the right words.

Then he threw those away and started speaking from the heart.

“That wasn’t your fault, Caleb.”

“It feels like it.” Caleb’s eyes met Fjord’s. The power in those words was almost stunning. “I would never want to hurt you, Fjord. I hope you know that.”

“I do. Know that.” Fjord said.

They were quiet for another moment. Then Caleb dropped his gaze and turned to leave.

“Wait,” Fjord’s voice was quiet and he realised a second later that he was reaching out towards where he stood. Caleb stayed where he was, but when he looked at Fjord, there was nervousness in his eyes, “do you want to sit down?”

“Are you sure?”

“Do you want to talk this through, or not?” Fjord asked, but there was no anger or maliciousness in his voice. “Because from the sounds of it, we could do with clearing the air a bit.”

He wanted to know that whatever relationship between them they had forged together could survive something like this. He wanted to make sure they could be okay.

The bed creaked slightly under Caleb’s weight and Fjord sat up straighter. He kept the space between them empty. He didn’t want to make any wrong move.

“Is there something else, Caleb?” Fjord asked.  

“I…” Caleb took a moment to think through his words. “I do not want this to ruin what we have built.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean that I have grown fond of you, Fjord. More than I could have expected.” Caleb forced himself to look up and let himself be vulnerable, for just a moment, “Nott and I… We only had each other for so long, and then we met you and your lot and everything was better. Everything _is_ better. These feelings I have for you Fjord… They almost scare me. I have not let myself love someone this much in a _very_ long time, and I… I want it to last. For as long as you will have me, I want to stay in your company.”

The quiet that followed Caleb’s words felt like the longest silence the world had ever gone through. It was almost unbearable.

“You… Love me.” It was a statement. One that Caleb couldn’t deny without lying. So he just nodded.

“If you don’t feel the same way, then I understand if-”

“I never said that, Caleb.”

Five words and Fjord had disarmed him.

Caleb didn’t know what to do now. He had never expected, had never anticipated his reaction. This wasn’t how he thought this conversation would go.

He didn’t have any words to reply.

“I wasn’t the only one who got fucked over by that _thing_.” Fjord said. His hand gripped the sheets between them. “We were both used.”

“Fjord-”

“And for the record, it only used your face because they knew that would be the only one that could work.” Fjord didn’t move but somehow, the space between them didn’t feel as big now.

“You don’t mean that-”

“I mean it, Caleb.” Fjord said. “I promise you, I mean it.”

Caleb searched Fjord’s face, looking for any hint of a lie. Anything to betray his words.

“Do you want this, Fjord? Do you want to keep this relationship between us going?” Caleb asked, not moving any muscle in his body. “If you say no, then I won’t ask again.”

Fjord paused.

Some lingering doubt gripped him by the throat and for a second he couldn’t breathe. He didn’t want to be wrong again. He couldn’t survive being wrong again.

“When we left Trostenwald, what did we say to each other before we set out?” The words came out a little choked, but Caleb understood.

“We stood just outside the Circus, as the others loaded up the carts” Caleb said, “and we promised each other that we’d make it work. Fjord, if you are having any doubts-”

“No. I don’t have any doubts anymore.” Fjord said, the tiniest of smiles on his face. “Caleb, can I kiss you?”

“Only if you’re sure this is what you want, Fjord.”

“It is, I promise. Do you?”

“I do.”

Fjord felt Caleb’s palm cover his hand, but still he waited for Fjord to lean in. Everything about the kiss was tentative. They paused; the moment before their lips touched.

“Last chance,” Caleb whispered. Fjord’s hand reached up and held his face, his thumb stroking the rough skin of his cheek.

“I don’t need it.” Fjord promised.

Fjord closed his eyes as he kissed Caleb. He felt Caleb’s hand grip his side.

It…

It felt amazing.

That revelation alone spurred Fjord’s heart into a drumbeat and he sank into Caleb’s kiss. _His_ Caleb.

The Caleb that loved him. The Caleb he loved back.

Fjord never wanted to leave this moment: Caleb’s hand gripping his side, his arm wrapping around him to pull them flush, Caleb’s thumb stroking his cheek, his hand tangled in Caleb’s hair, their hearts thundering in this chests, Caleb’s little gasp as Fjord pulled his hair just a little too hard, his heavy breaths as Caleb’s fingers brushed his skin.

“I can’t lose you, Caleb,” Fjord didn’t mean to say, leaning his forehead against Caleb’s. But he meant it. He meant it with every cell in his body, and every ounce of his will.

The words started to spill and he felt his eyes burn. The relief in his body was overwhelming.

“I thought I might have lost you. I thought you were dead in that bed. I couldn’t live in a world without you, I couldn’t look Nott in the eye, I- I’d-” Fjord didn’t mean to spill his soul into Caleb’s lap, but Caleb just cupped his face and kissed him gently.

“But I’m alive, Fjord.” Caleb promised. He took Fjord’s hand, resting it on his chest above his heart. “I’m _alive_. You won’t lose me.”

Fjord kissed him again, his hand curling into Caleb’s shirt, pulling him ever closer. Holding him against his chest. Letting the heat in his blood bleed into the kiss. Drinking in every small sound Caleb made.

He wanted Caleb so much, it was almost embarrassing to admit. Fjord couldn’t pretend anymore. He didn’t _want_ to pretend.

“ _Show me how alive you are_.” It was a whisper, a challenge, ghosting over Caleb’s skin.

“I can do that.” Caleb’s words came out with a hitch as Fjord’s hand slipped under his shirt and along the curve of his spine.

Fjord missed the warmth as Caleb pulled himself away, and he was a little confused ( _disappointed_ ) until he felt Caleb pull him closer to the edge of the bed. Then Caleb knelt on the ground and Fjord couldn’t really hide his reaction.

“Tell me if you want to stop,” Caleb said, reaching for the waistband of Fjord’s trousers.

“That won’t be a problem.” Fjord said, feeling himself get hard just from the prospect of what was about to happen. Caleb’s hands stilled and he looked up at Fjord.

“If you say stop, we stop.” He said, “Alright?” Caleb repeated, a note of something in his voice that Fjord could only describe as endearing. He leaned down and kissed Caleb’s forehead.

“Alright. But right now I’m saying ‘ _please keep going'_.” Fjord said.

“Okay.” Caleb said, a small smile on his face, “you need to lift your hips.”

It took a little bit of coordination, but eventually, Fjord’s trousers were around his ankles and it was obvious just how achingly hard he was.

Caleb gave him a few, languid strokes and Fjord tried (and failed) to hold back his groan. His face felt hot and only grew more so when he felt Caleb lick a stripe down the length of his cock, flicking his tongue across the tip.

Fjord stopped trying to play coy as Caleb took his cock in his mouth. The pace was intoxicatingly, _maddeningly_ slow; they weren’t really ones for speed. At least not when it came to _this_ kind of pleasure. A good book rarely compared to reducing Fjord to a moaning, shaking mess with just his mouth and his hands.

And Caleb had a very talented mouth. Both for magic, and…

“C- Caleb-” Fjord’s voice was rasping. His hand was in Caleb’s hair and he didn’t really remember how it got there but it probably involved Caleb’s tongue, “Caleb, stop, I’m gonna-”

Caleb had already pulled away before Fjord had even finished speaking. He didn’t remove his hand from where it rested on the shaft, but he did look up at Fjord with a slight crease between his brows.

“Not before you,” Fjord croaked out. He held Caleb’s cheek and kissed him again. Caleb leaned heavily into the kiss, giving Fjord a few languid strokes as he did so, swallowing down every one of Fjord’s groans.

Fjord’s hand touched Caleb’s wrist and Caleb opened his palm, threading his fingers between Fjord’s.

“Now that’s just cheating,” Fjord murmured against Caleb’s lips, “and you’re still wearing too many clothes.”

“Am I?” Caleb’s tone was teasing but he squeezed Fjord’s hand encouragingly.  

“I best think you are,” Fjord said, hooking his finger around Caleb’s shirt collar and pulling it slightly. “May I?”

Caleb replied by leaning back a little and shrugging off his coat and throwing it somewhere into the room. He always seemed thinner without it, but that wasn’t what Fjord was focusing on as Caleb unclipped his book holsters and his shirt rode up a little over his waist.

“Let me, Darlin’,” Fjord said, his impatience getting the better of him for a moment.

The look on Caleb’s face was bemused as Fjord started to paw at his clothing, but he moved his arms up so Fjord could throw his shirt away in the same general direction of his coat.

Caleb stilled Fjord’s hands as they began to work on his trouser buttons. Not ‘ _stop_ ’, but a ‘ _hold on_ ’.

“Maybe we both should get _on_ the bed.” Caleb suggested, resting his hands on Fjord’s shoulders. Fjord’s hands instinctively settled on Caleb’s waist, gently stroking the freckled and slightly scarred skin.

“What are you thinking?” Fjord asked, trying to pretend like he wouldn’t happily take Caleb right then, right there. Maybe pinning him against the wall, jerking him off over and over until Caleb could only moan his name. Maybe taking him as they lay on the floor, no blankets or pillows to soften the unyielding wood beneath them.

Fjord was getting distracted.

He needed to focus.

Fantasies could always become reality some other time.

“Maybe…” Caleb said, musing for a moment, “you, sitting against the headboard. Touching me, as I rode you like a mustang.” The old joke pulled Caleb’s mouth into a smile.

“I know you’re making fun of me but you’re also kinda turning me on there, Caleb.” Fjord admitted, his grip tightening for just a moment.

“So you want to?” Caleb asked, leaning in so their chests touched. “We can do something else later, if you like.”

“Oh I _really_ like the sound of that.” Fjord said. “But first we’ve got to get you out of those clothes.”

“Be my guest.” Caleb said. He played along as Fjord hooked his thumbs along Caleb’s waistband and pulled his trousers down over the curve of his arse.

He gave Caleb a squeeze that made his face flush before pulling the trousers down enough for them to fall to the ground.

“You always look so pretty like that.” Fjord murmured, planting feather-light kisses along Calebs cheek.

“Go sit against the headboard and let me get my shoes off.” Caleb said, hanging his head just a little to hide his blush.

“Yes, sir.” Fjord said, pretending that he was only being playful.

Caleb smiled as he turned away to fully strip down, letting it fall onto the floor as it may. He could feel Fjord’s eyes following his every movement, and if it was any earlier in their relationship, maybe Caleb would have felt embarrassed.

Instead, he felt a warm thrill when he glanced up and saw the look on Fjord’s face.

On his way back to the bed, Caleb took a little detour to Fjord’s bag, rummaging around until he found the small bottle he was looking for.

“You ready?” Fjord asked, watching Caleb straddle him with a look of excitement on his face. “Do you want to prep, or can I do it?”

“You want to do it?” Caleb asked, holding the bottle delicately in his hand like he was teasing Fjord with it. Fjord’s hand settled on Caleb’s bare hip, squeezing him gently.

“I’d like nothing more,” Fjord said, with so much honesty in his voice that Caleb knew he couldn’t refuse. Not when Fjord was gazing at him so sweetly.

Caleb kissed him again, just to feel their bodies graze each other one more time, just because he could and he wanted to. Fjord kissed back fiercely, plucking the bottle from Caleb’s weakening grasp.

“You tell me if we need to slow down,” Fjord said, slicking up his fingers and resting them against Caleb’s entrance. Caleb ground down, trying to chase that pressure, but Fjord’s grip kept his hips frustratingly high. “I want to hear you, babe.”

“ _Please_ ,” Caleb gasped out, the blush on his face reddening, “Fjord, I need you.”

Fjord slipped his first finger in and he knew he would never get over how pretty Caleb sounded as he started to work him open.

Slowly. Methodically. Savouring every sound and every pant.

“Like that?” Fjord asked, a smile on his face. He could feel his crotch ache again as he kept his eyes on Caleb’s face.

“ _Just_ like that,” Caleb said, closing his eyes for a moment as he concentrated on the feelings, “ _Gott_ _just like that, keep going, please_.”

It took a lot of willpower not to come right then and there; not with Caleb’s sweet begs and how he clenched around Fjord’s finger and how he shivers when Fjord stroked his side.

“I’m still trying to learn you, Darlin’.” Fjord said, pausing in his movements for just a moment, “but I think I’m starting to learn what you like. You can trust me to take care of you.”

“I think… I think we know each other quite well,” Caleb said, his hands coming up and gripping Fjord’s shoulders. His blunt nails were leaving marks in Fjord’s skin.

“Oh yeah?” Fjord asked, slightly amused at how hard Caleb was trying to keep it together while he had Fjord’s finger in him, slowly moving in and out a knuckle at a time.

“Yes.” Caleb agreed, taking a sharper breath as Fjord crooked his finger _just_ a little. “For example, I know that you have particularly sensitive nipples and you like it when I play with them.”

He let his hands slide down Fjord’s chest enough so his hands rested on Fjord’s pectoral muscles. Then he ran his thumbs over Fjord’s nipples, pinching them just enough to make him gasp and make his chest push into his hands. He felt them harden under his touch.

“I know you make an adorable little growl if I bite your lip,” Caleb said, leaning in and capturing Fjord’s mouth. He kissed him desperately for a long, endless moment. His teeth closed around Fjord’s bottom lip, pulling it just a little; just enough for Fjord to growl and sink his finger deeper into Caleb, tightening the grip of his other hand.

Caleb _keened_ , sinking down, chasing Fjord’s hand, chasing that feeling and that stimulation. He bit Fjord’s lip harder, pinching his nipples again for good measure.

Then Caleb pulled away. The look in his eye was a little wilder. A little bit electric.

He leaned in and pressed a little kiss to Fjord’s nose, smiling as he leaned back to look at his face.

“And I know that you look adorable when you scrunch your nose up when I kiss it.” Caleb said, moving his hands to Fjord’s face so he could just hold him. He kissed him again, softer this time. Less wild.

More in love.

“Anyone ever tell you that you’re wonderful?” Fjord asked, letting his free hand run up Caleb’s spine. He wanted to map out every scar, every freckle, every bruise and then add  some of his own. A few, precious little bruises to claim him.

Slowly, Fjord added another finger. He paused when Caleb hissed, resting his forehead against Fjord’s shoulder.

“No. P- Please… Keep going.” Caleb managed to get out, throwing his head back as he sank down again, chasing the pleasure as best he could.

Fjord really didn’t need to be told twice. In fact, he really didn’t need to be told at all, but _damn_ if he didn’t like hearing Caleb’s babbling when he was like this. This was Caleb at his base element; just raw and unfiltered emotion and feeling and _need_.

Every wall had crumbled to dust. Every emotional defence had been left at the door.

He let the words wash over him as he slipped another finger into Caleb, working him open, crooking his finger every so often to hear Caleb whine. The other hand gently stroked Caleb’s back, his side, his thigh; his movements almost a distracted habit as he worked.

“You ready, Darlin’.” Fjord asked, watching Caleb’s body language for any signs of discomfort. He was getting pretty good at reading him, if he were to be a little cocky about it.

Caleb said something in a language that Fjord didn’t know, but he’d been around Caleb long enough to recognise an enthusiastic ‘ _yes_ ’ in Zemnian.

Slowly, just slow enough to give them both time to adjust, Fjord pushed into Caleb, both hands gripping his hips now. The look on Caleb’s face was transcendent, and Fjord would never get tired of it. Would never get tired of _this._

Caleb settled and Fjord gave him a moment to catch his breath. His thumbs rubbed gentle circles along Caleb’s pelvis. He let his thoughts and the feeling of nails biting into his skin keep his mind off just how close he was to finishing.

“Ready when you are,” Fjord said quietly, pushing all strain out of his voice.

“Are you sure?” Caleb asked, shifting his hips just a little.

Fjord bit down on his lip hard enough that he imagined he could taste blood.

“Always sure.” Fjord ground out, snapping his hips up.

That was all the encouragement Caleb needed to start a rhythm.

Nothing in any realm of existence could have mattered once Caleb started rising and sinking down on Fjord’s cock.

They were the only people that existed, and only the pleasure in their veins could keep them tethered. Nothing outside those four walls of that room in that inn mattered.

There was only the scratches Caleb’s nails left down Fjord’s chest, only the rolling of Fjord’s hips and the occasional harder thrust that made Caleb gasp, there was only the feeling of sweat and the friction of skin.

There was only each other, chasing that release that neither of them wanted to give into just yet.

Fjord wrapped his arm around Caleb waist and held him tight, leaning forwards so he could kiss hickies along his collarbone.

“Ya know, Darlin’,” Fjord’s lips barely left Caleb’s skin. Caleb shivered as he sank down again, “I never did tell you how well I know you.”

He smiled against Caleb’s chest. Hands were gripping his hair, holding him close. Caleb’s heart was hammering against his ribs.

_Show me how alive you are_.

“You like to be touched.” Fjord said, tilting his head up and leaving a trail of kisses up from his sternum, up Caleb’s neck, up to his cheek, “you need to be held. Just gotta know that someone’s here for you and I’m gonna be that person.”

He held Caleb’s face with his free hand, keeping his gaze.

“I love you, Caleb Widogast. As long as you’ll have me, I’m here.” Fjord said. He leaned in and whispered in Caleb’s ear. “ _Come for me, Love_.”

Caleb came so hard the breath left his lungs and he saw stars. But still, he didn’t stop until he felt himself be filled and Fjord’s form go weak beneath him.

They gave themselves a moment before Caleb pulled himself off Fjord’s length and sat on the bed beside Fjord. Fjord couldn’t deny the pride in his chest at the flush that covered his entire form. (He knew he probably looked _just_ as thoroughly fucked). Lazily, Fjord wiped himself clean with the closest discarded item of his clothing (his shirt, caught on the banister), and threw it away from the bed again.

Without really thinking, Fjord pulled Caleb closer, wrapping his arm around Caleb’s shoulders.  

“Since when did you know Zemnian?” Caleb asked, shifting a little to look more at Fjord, who blushed and went a little shy.

“I’ve been trying to learn a bit of it. Just thought it would be a nice surprise.” Fjord admitted.

Caleb leaned in and kissed Fjord sweetly.

“It was a wonderful surprise.” He promised.

They lay in silence for a little while, their breathing catching up with them. Fjord let himself focus on Caleb’s heartbeat, counting the rhythm.

“We made a mess.” Caleb said, a little out of the blue. Fjord frowned, just a little.

“We did, yeah,” Fjord said, looking Caleb in the eye, “but we’re making this work. We can get past this.”

“I was more referring to the semen on the bed,” Caleb said bluntly, sparking a shocked laugh out of Fjord. He reached out and gripped Fjord’s hand, “but yes. We will make this work.”

“Damn straight.” Fjord said, kissing the top of Caleb’s hair. He let the silence stretch between them for a moment longer. “Do you wanna go again?” He asked.

“Very much so.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that a lot of smut is just the author projecting their kinks onto fictional characters, but I've read some nasty things on this site so no one can judge me for writing a touch-starved powerbottom Caleb that likes being felt up, alright!

**Author's Note:**

> I'm [queenmoggy](http://queenmoggy.tumblr.com/) on tumblr. Just in case you want to peruse my fine critrole commentary that is mostly all caps and gushing about Nott and Caleb


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